Suitcase Murder Suspect Pleads Not Guilty

A Manhattan man accused of killing a woman and then disposing of her body in a suitcase pleaded not guilty Tuesday to a murder charge.

The plea from Hassan Malik, 55, of East Harlem, came weeks after police got tips concerning a surveillance video that showed a man in a dark coat and hat pulling a suitcase along the sidewalk on East 114th Street.

Aside from entering his plea, Malik didn’t speak at the hearing. His attorney, Earl Ward, declined comment on the way out of the courtroom. The suspect, who faces 25 years to life in prison if convicted on the second-degree murder charge, is being held without bail. He is scheduled to be back in court Feb. 15.

In a hearing last month, prosecutors said Malik — who has an extensive criminal history — told police that he was responsible for Williams’s death, but claimed he had acted in self-defense.

According to the criminal complaint, Malik changed his account to police. Officials said he first told authorities that he came home to his Pleasant Avenue apartment to find Williams’s corpse. He then admitted fabricating that account, saying the two had actually been involved in a fight over money that turned violent, according to the complaint.

Malik also told authorities that Williams hit him on the shoulder with a frying pan, prompting him to strike her in the head twice with the same pan, the complaint said. He also acknowledged wrapping an electric cord around her neck until she lost consciousness, but said that act came after the woman tried to strangle him, according to the complaint.

Authorities say Williams also had a lengthy criminal record, with several drug arrests. Her sister, Yajaira Springe, said she had no idea how Williams and Malik knew each other. “How those two met, I don’t know and will never know,” she said.